The Shadow's Other Half
by Hitorimono
Summary: Hitori is an unwanted child. Her parents don't care about her. When she meets boy like her, can they survive in the world they truly belong in, a world of ninjas, jutsu, and demons, or will darkness take them? T for language, violence, and self-mutilation I'd advise you to not read this. It is old and very poorly written.
1. Missing Link

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I'm not nearly that talented. If I did, do you think I would be spending my time writing this? I do own Hitori and ****Shihan****, though.**

**Sorry if it's bad. I'm watching Howl's Moving Castle while I write this, so I'm pretty distracted. If there are any errors, I apologize and blame my short attention span. Sorry if it's kinda boring for now. This chapter will set up for the rest of the story. It's really important, so they don't actually leave our world yet.**

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Hitori grumbled to herself, her dark lips turned downward in a frown.

She was looking at her reflection in her mirror. She looked as she normally did: straight black hair that went past her waist, her small, delicate nose, thin lips adorned with her favorite dark purple lipstick, eyes with dark gray eye shadow, outlined with thick black eyeliner that hid the dark rings around her eyes from lack of sleep.

She was an insomniac. She could only get about an hour of sleep every night, but she had gotten used to it over the years.

She sighed, accepting that she still had to do as her parents had told her to do.

About an hour earlier they had informed her that they were going to pick up some old friends from the airport and go to dinner, and that she was expected to come along to entertain their son so that the adults could catch up in peace.

Still grumbling, she changed her clothes. Her parents hadn't found her original attire suitable, so she had been forced to change. Granted, her parents were afraid of her, but they were even more afraid of being found strange by their neighbors.

She went in her closet and selected a maroon shirt that exposed her shoulders. The bottom of the shirt was slanted, the longer half on her right side. The sleeves went a full five inches below her hands and were slanted as well.

She also selected a thin black spaghetti strap shirt to wear under it. She changed into it then examined herself in her full length mirror.

Yes, she would keep the pants she had been wearing. They were more or less similar to Hinata's, but black. She had made them, just like she had made all her other clothes. All her shoes had been bought online, since she couldn't make shoes that looked similar to those in Naruto.

Naruto was Hitori's favorite show. You could even say she was a bit obsessed. Well, a lot obsessed. The kind of clothes that were sold online for cosplaying weren't very good quality, so she made her own. It was a hobby of hers and helped calm her down.

She put on black ninja shoes she had bought online, grabbed a small maroon bag with a long, thin black strap that she put over one shoulder, and then sat on a chair in front of a smaller mirror mounted on her wall.

She examined her strange eyes. They had always puzzled her. When she felt any kind of emotion strongly they would turn red. Any amount of any emotion in between would be some form of darker red, depending on the amount of emotion.

When she was calm or indifferent, her eyes were black.

No matter what the color, she never had any pupils. That was what puzzled Hitori the most.

She was pulled out of her daze when she heard her mother call up, "Hitorimono Taira Kanashii! Get down here this INSTANT! We're going to be LATE!"

Hitori didn't answer. Instead, she finished getting ready. She opened her dresser drawer and pulled out three kunai and put them in her bag along with her money.

She opened her door and went to the top of the stairs, then remembered something.

She rushed in her room and grabbed something off her dresser. It was a Leaf Village ninja headband. She was so obsessed she even trained as well as she could, but some things they did in Naruto weren't possible.

She had deadly accuracy with weapons, though, since that was something she could practice at.

She had also taken gymnastics to improve her reflexes. It had worked. She was able to do back flips faster than anyone else she had ever met before, which delighted her.

She put her headband on her waist, slanting the opposite way from her shirt and went to the stairs again.

When she walked into the living room, her mother frowned. She was obviously displeased about how Hitori was dressed.

"Couldn't you have worn something more, I don't know, nicer?"

Hitori just grunted and glared at her mother, shutting her up.

In silence, they drove to the airport. After about ten minutes of waiting, some people walked out the main doors of the airport and looked around until they spotted Hitori's parents. The two adults smiled and walked over, tugging an irritated looking boy after them. He was looking at the ground, frowning.

Hitori heard him grumble something like, "…another frilly girl that'll be appalled by me."

His mother looked at him sharply and whispered sharply, "Hush, wretched boy."

In the mean time, Hitori's mother had kept smiling and slowly bent down, whispering harshly, "Don't you dare do anything offending."

Hitori just ignored her mother, seeing as she didn't care what her mother said. Her mother couldn't make her do anything.

Finally, the boy looked up. His eyes widened in shock, as did Hitori's. For a moment, her eyes flashed red, but she quickly calmed herself. As soon as they had made eye contact, they knew that there was a secret they had in common.

'_Do you sense it?'_ Hitori inwardly groaned. She had hoped it would keep quiet.

_Yes. Something about him is different. Does he have one too?_

'_Yes. He has Anei, my counterpart. It is odd that we would meet. You should confront him about this later.'_

_I know that! I'm not stupid!_

'_Could've fooled me,' _Kumori stated, clearly amused, making Hitori angry. Kumori was good to her, though. She wasn't really­ean, just a little rude sometimes.

Her eyes flared red, only to slowly turn back to black as Hitori calmed herself. She remembered that she would be able to talk to the boy later, when they returned home.

She sized him up. He had short black hair and pale skin, much like Hitori. He was apparently a goth too. He had on a plain, long sleeved black t-shirt and baggy dark blue pants on.

The thing that surprised her most was the fact that worn on his left leg was a Leaf Village headband.

They got in the car and drove to the restaurant. The adults talked, but Hitori and the boy were silent. When they arrived at the fancy restaurant they got out and went inside, sitting at a table they had had reserved.

Hitori just ordered water, not being hungry. She didn't eat much. She only ate lunch. The boy didn't order anything to eat either, just water.

When the adults had finished eating, they all piled into the car again and drove to Hitori's home.

Hitori and the boy walked silently up to her room, having been ignored by their parents. When they got in her room, she closed the door quietly and spun around, her eyes red.

"Who are you, and why do you have Anei?"

He calmly sat down on Hitori's bed and looked at her, his black eyes suddenly blue. Hitori's eyes widened when she saw he had no pupils.

"My name is Shihan. Why do you have Kumori?"

Hitori actually smiled, her eyes lighting up with amusement. Shihan smiled back.

"I don't know why. I just know that because of her, I don't belong here. I suppose that means you don't either."

"I don't. I guess that's why I'm here. I know a way to get where we belong."

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**In case you didn't know, the italics are Hitori's thoughts, while the italics in apostrophes are Kumori's thoughts.**

**Yeah, I wrote the entire first chapter on paper, then I got an idea and had to change the ENTIRE thing, then I had to type it all up. I meant to put this up a few days ago, but it took longer than expected. I don't think I'm going to waste time writing it down anymore. As soon as I get on the computer, I decide to change it all anyway.**

**Please review! This is my first fanfiction, so please review! I want to know what you think. If you think there's something suckish about it, don't just tell me it's suckish. Tell me why you think it is, so I can make it less suckish. Thanks for reading!**


	2. A Deal Is Struck

**Second chapter! Yay! Hope you like it!**

**Enjoy!**

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"_I don't. I guess that's why I'm here. I know a way to get where we belong."_

Shihan sat stoically, waiting for a response. Finally, she seemed to recover a bit.

"What the hell? Are you serious!"

"You know, you shouldn't yell. I'm right here. I'm not deaf, you know."

Hitori sighed, annoyed. She hated when people did that to her. Granted, she did acted that way towards others, but no one else had ever had the nerve to smart mouth her like that. It was intriguing, the first real challenge she'd had in a long while.

She calmed herself, her red eyes dulling somewhat, dwindling to a dark, dull red. She tried again.

"Are you talking about what I think you're talking about?"

She looked meaningfully at his Leaf Village headband on his leg, indicating that was what she meant. The corner of Shihan's mouth curved upward in a small smile, obviously something he didn't do very often.

"Do you have anything entertaining to watch?"

Hitori gave a small smile back. "Of course," she stated simply. She stood up and walked over to a large shelf, the shelves piled with Naruto DVDs. She selected the first one in the English series. She had all the Japanese ones and all the English ones so far. She popped it in her DVD player and sat down on her bed next to Shihan, watching the show together for a few minutes in silence.

She had a content expression on her face, one she always wore when watching Naruto. It was the only think that kept her content. She had no friends, so watching Naruto made her feel like she was cared about.

She knew the characters, knew all about them. She knew them as well as herself, if not better. She was trusted with their innermost thoughts, and she could sit for hours just talking to a picture of one of them, pouring out her innermost thoughts.

After a short while, Shihan spoke again. "We can go there."

It was barely more than a whisper, but she heard him.

'_The boy is telling the truth. Do what he says.'_

_Are you sure? How do I know he's telling the truth?_

'_Trust me.'_

The way Kumori sounded was so pleading that Hitori just had to listen to her. While Hitori was debating with Kumori in her own head, Shihan was debating with Anei.

'_Just get on with it! Let's go! We _belong_ there! I don't want to wait any longer!'_

_I don't want to rush her. She's probably deciding whether I'm to be trusted or not._

'_Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. Just hurry it up, okay?'_

_Fine, _Shihan thought back to Anei begrudgingly.

He turned to Hitori slowly. "Do you wish to go?"

Before he even had time to take in another breath, Hitori had grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him to face her. "How do we get there?"

He smiled thinly again and stood up slowly. He wasn't one to rush anything. "Do you have any kind of blade on you?"

She nodded and pulled a kunai out of her bag and handed it to him, her eyes bright red with excitement. Shihan's were an equally bright blue. He pulled up his sleeve and hovered above his arm for a moment, remembering something.

"Do you have anything you wish to bring with you?"

She nodded and ran into her closet, grabbing a big black bag and put all her money into it, along with another outfit and a lot of medical tape. She also packed a hair brush, and then remembered something else.

"Elsa!" She turned around swiftly and ran out of the closet, reaching inside a drawer and grabbing the rest of her weapons, throwing them into a smaller bag she put into the bigger one. Then, she looked under her bed.

Just as she had suspected, Elsa was underneath it, slowly washing a paw. Elsa was Hitori's cat, her best living friend. She pulled her out from her hiding spot and then put her bag over her shoulder, gingerly placing her cat in it.

"I'm ready now."

Shihan brought the kunai to his arm again and slowly broke the skin. Hitori could smell the iron-like scent of the blood. She had always loved it, another reason she was a freak.

"May I have you're arm now?" Shihan extended his hand, obviously indicating Hitori to do the same. She paled.

"No. I can't."

'_Come on, girl! He won't care what you do to yourself! Just take the knife!'_

Hitori hesitantly took the knife, still unsure of what his reaction would be, since Kumori was so desperate sounding.

Finally, she sighed and pulled up her sleeve, quickly made the cut, then looked up to Shihan. She wasn't ready for the compassionate look he was giving her.

"I'm so sorry, Hitori. I had no idea things were this bad for you." He looked again at her wrist and arm, examining the cuts she had obviously inflicted on herself. He carefully took her arm and said, "Hold on."

She didn't understand what he meant until he pressed their two cuts together and she felt a strange feeling, like she was falling. She looked down and immediately grabbed onto Shihan. There was nothing but darkness all around them.

The darkness didn't scare her. It had always been a comfort. What scared her was the fact that they were falling.

Suddenly, she felt herself collide with something and noticed they had stopped. She looked around for a moment before collapsing in pain.

The last thought she had before losing consciousness was that they had made it, and that now her troubles were over when Kumori interrupted her blissful thoughts.

'_This is only just the beginning, girl.' _

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**It's, like, 12:00 midnight right now, so I'm sorry if it's crap. I have sleeping troubles, so I decided to write the second chapter. I'm tired now, so I should sleep before I end up staying up too late again. Review, please! I need to know if anyone likes this story, or if I should just abandon it!**

**Also, that first sentence is italicized because that's from the first chapter, just so this one makes a little more sense. Anything at the beginning that's italicized will always be like that because it's to refresh your memory.**


	3. Awakening

**Disclaimer: Forgot this last time. Sorry. Anyway, I don't own Naruto, obviously. I only own Hitori and Shihan.**

**Have fun reading! **

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'_This is only just the beginning, girl.'_

"I-I th-think she's wa-waking up," a small, shy voice said.

"Quick, get some water," a different voice said, this one louder and more confident.

_Why do they sound familiar,_ she asked herself. She groaned slightly, putting a hand to her head. She had a pounding headache.

"What happened," she mumbled to herself. She opened her eyes, rubbing them.

Then, she remembered. The first thing she did was look for Shihan. He was sitting on a seat next to her, looking at her with slight concern hidden well in his eyes. He hid it well, but not well enough that she didn't notice it.

"Where are we?" She rubbed her head again, finally looking around at the other figures in the room. She nearly gasped. Thankfully, she contained herself and didn't let her surprise show.

Standing around the room were three people she knew quite well.

The one standing closest to her was the second voice she had heard. It was Inuzuka Kiba, standing there with Akamaru on his head like having a dog lay on your head was the most natural thing in the world.

Standing at the end of the bed was Hyuga Hinata, a glass of water held in her hands, a worried and nervous smile on her face.

What almost made her squeal was the person standing behind Shihan. It was the one and only Aburame Shino. He was one of her two favorite characters, the other being Sabaku no Gaara. She thought she was going to faint, but she held her composure and did her best to keep calm.

"This is Hinata's place, the Hyuga household," Kiba said, then realized that they probably didn't know who Hinata was. "This is Hinata," he stated, tilting his head in her direction. "I'm Kiba, and that creepy guy over there is Shino." He laughed when he called Shino creepy, so she knew that he was joking.

"H-hello," Hinata said, smiling a little more. "Hello," was the only think Hitori could say. She was still in mild shock.

"Hitori, do you remember how we got here?" It was Shihan that had spoken.

'_Play along with it, girl.'_

_How many times do I have to tell you? Stop calling me girl! I have a name!_

'_So? I can call you whatever I like.'_

_Hmph. Fine. Be that way._

Playing along, Hitori replied, "No. I'm afraid I don't. Do you?"

His eyes momentarily blued a bit, showing he was pleased by her answer. "No. I can't seem to remember much."

"Well, from your headbands, you are both obviously Leaf Village shinobi."

Hitori looked behind Shihan, startled. It had been Shino that had spoken. She hadn't expected it to be him that spoke first. She looked down at her waist, still playing along.

"I guess you're right." She looked down, pretending to look a little sad at not being able to remember.

"Hey, I have an idea!" Everyone turned to look at Kiba, waiting for him to tell them his great idea. He paused for a few more seconds to create suspense. "Why don't we show you around the village? Maybe you'll remember something."

"Th-that's a gr-great idea, Kiba," Hinata stammered out. "I like it," Shihan said. Hitori gave in. "Sure, why not?" Shino remained silent.

Shihan helped her to get up and get used to standing. Her legs were wobbly for a minute, but she soon recovered. They all exited the room and followed Hinata to the exit that was somewhere in this maze of corridors and rooms.

When Hitori was passing a hallway, someone suddenly walked into her path. She quickly did a back flip to avoid collision, landing soundly. She looked at who it was briefly, stunned for a small moment. It was Neji.

She quickly bowed in apology and muttered, "Gomen," before stepping aside and joining Shihan who had waiting for her. Neji watched Hitori and Shihan until they disappeared around a corner.

"Something's… off about those two," he said softly to himself. He would have to find out more about them later, but right now he had to go to training with Gai-sensei, Lee, and Tenten. He continued the way he was headed, thinking about Hitori and Shihan the whole time.

Finally, they all exited the large building and started to walk around Konoha, Hitori and Shihan getting strange looks and glares because they're dark looks. Anyone who glared at them got glared at in return.

"Come on, you guys," Kiba said, running towards afamiliar lookingfood stand. "Let's get some ramen!"

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**Author: Okay. I'm putting this up earlier tonight! It's only 10:00 PM this time. Yay! I won't be able to get any sleep, anyway. I can never get to sleep before 1 in the morning. I have insomnia. I'm used to it now, though!**

**Hitori: Author should get more sleep. She might die if she doesn't.**

**Author: No need to be so morbid about it.**

**Hitori: If I just tell you that you'll be tired in the morning, you'll stay up. If I tell you you'll die, maybe you'll listen.**

**Author: Why do you care, Hitori?**

**Hitori: (takes deep breath) If you're tired, you won't be able to write. If you don't write, I won't exist. If I don't exist, I'll be nonexistent!**

**Author: Details, details. Why are you so bossy?**

**Hitori: Because that's how you decided I should be today.**

**Author: Oh yeah. Right. I forgot. Anyway, review, please! I need to know if this story is any good.**

**Hitori: Yeah. What she said.**


	4. Ramen

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Duh!**

**Enjoy!**

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"_Come on, you guys. Let's get some ramen!"_

They had all entered Ichiraku's and Hitori had to try her hardest to act like there was nothing unusual about this.

I mean, this was one of her greatest dreams.

Sitting at Ichiraku's eating ramen with the characters of Naruto for no special reason. Now, that dream was reality. She discreetly pinched herself to make sure she was awake, then nearly squealed with delight. She still couldn't believe this.

She sat down at a booth with Hinata and Shino. Kiba asked everyone what they wanted and said that he would go and order it for them. Hitori was still in shock, so she just said she'd have whatever he was having. He walked up to the counter and told the woman standing there what they wanted then he came back and sat down.

Kiba, Hinata, and Shino were on one side, while Hitori and Shihan were on the other.

'_Good job, girl. You actually got us here. I must say, I'm impressed.'_

_Yay for me. I impressed a demon that lives inside me whose opinion means nothing to me. Whoopdie flippin' do._

Kumori shut up at that. Hitori wasn't in a mood to talk to her right then. She wanted to concentrate on the fact that she was actually in Konoha at Ichiraku's with Hinata, Shino, and Kiba. It was too good to be true.

Their food finally came and they ate quickly. When everyone was done, Shihan spoke up.

"I think it would be wise if we went to speak with the Hokage. Maybe then we could find out something."

"It's worth a try," Hitori added, trying to convince the others it was important. Shihan obviously wanted to go there.

"Sure. Good idea. Here. We'll show you the way." Kiba was the most talkative today.

"Thank you, Kiba," Hitori said absently, thinking about what they were going to tell the Hokage when they saw him. Walking in and telling him that they were from an alternate universe where they watched their lives on T.V. didn't seem like such a good idea.

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**Sorry it's so short! I'm in a hurry. My mother (glare) is making me go up to my room. It's not like I'm going to be able to sleep, anyway. I just wanted to put something up so that anyone who reads this story has SOMETHING to read.**


	5. Old 'Friends'

**Disclaimer: (sigh) I don't own Naruto. I think that's pretty obvious.**

**Anyway, last night, I stayed up and wrote, and this is what I came up with. I would prefer going to sleep before 1:00 A.M., but I'm used to 5 hours of sleep, so it doesn't affect me too bad anymore. I've always been naturally tired, so it's not anything I'm not used to. **

**Enjoy!**

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"_Thank you, Kiba."_

Hitori's mind was racing as they neared the Hokage's tower. She just didn't know what to do.

_Why can't I think of anything?_

'_Girl, let Anei lead this. He knows what to do. Don't worry. We thought ahead, you know. We're not nearly as rash as you humans are.'_

_Thought ahead for what?_

Kumori didn't answer, so Hitori decided to drop the matter for now. She would definitely remember this later.

They had reached the building now and Kiba proceeded to enter, ushering them in. They followed silently, Hitori's mind still in a frantic scramble.

'_Just trust me, okay?'_

Hitori didn't know what made her more nervous: the thought of not being prepared to see the Hokage or trusting a demon.

Finally, they reached his office. "Good luck," Kiba whispered before knocking and jogging away.

Hitori started whispering furtively to Shihan. "What are we going to do?"

"Don't worry," he whispered back, his voice calm and steady. "Trust Kumori and you'll be fine. They know what they're doing. She'll tell you what to say."

Hitori glared at him and he gave her an innocent look, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

She muttered something rude that made him huff, then the door opened and they were asked to state their business.

"We're here to see the Hokage. We have important matters to discuss. He will want to see us." Shihan had sounded so sure of himself Hitori almost believed him, but she knew they weren't expected. They were just two people showing up randomly, but Shihan's lie seemed to convince the person that had opened the door to let them enter.

"This way, please." He motioned to a door and opened it, sticking his head in. "There are two people here to see you. They said you would want to talk to them. They say it's important."

"Bring them in."

Hitori almost cried out at the voice. She knew now that they had ended up sometime after the teams had been assigned and that it was before the chunin exams, because it was the Third Hokage she had heard. She had never thought she would hear the voice in person before.

They entered and stood there for a minute before the Third actually put down what he had been reading and looked up at them.

"You said you had something important to discuss?"

Hitori's eyes turned red suddenly, while Shihan's turned blue. "It's been a while, Sarutobi."

She could barely recognize her own voice. She hadn't been controlling her actions when she spoke. It had been Kumori speaking through her. Apparently, being there allowed Kumori to control her actions if she wanted to, since she hadn't been able to in the real world.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" The Hokage's voice was uncertain, but it sounded like he was starting to remember something.

"I'm not surprised you don't remember us, Sarutobi." This time, it was Shihan who spoke, his voice nearly unrecognizable as well. "It _has_ been fourteen years." He smirked, something that seemed a little out of place on him.

The Hokage's eyes widened briefly, and then he passed a hand over his face, composing himself. He sighed, looking exhausted.

"Kumori, Anei. It's been a long time." "Thirteen years," Hitori hissed. "Ho-how did you get back?"

This time, Hitori smirked. "After all that trouble you went through to get rid of us, seeing us must make you feel so happy. Just putting us into human vessels from another reality where we won't be able to use our powers isn't enough to get rid of us."

Shihan's smirk widened. "Yes. We found a way to get back. Sadly, we can't kill you. It would be pointless, plus the fact we can't use our full power yet, anyway. You got lucky, this time."

Sarutobi stayed silent for a minute, looking like he was thinking hard. He opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, and closed it. Finally, he seemed to decide on something to say. "Please let the children speak to me themselves. I would prefer talking to them."

"Very well," Hitori and Shihan said together, their eyes slowly turning back to black.

"Children, would you like to stay in this village?"

Hitori immediately jumped on the question, answering for the both of them. "Yes sir. We would like to very much."

"I'll see if I can find you somewhere to stay. If you would like, I could try to see if there are any squads who would like you to be part of their team. I know you are both quite able. You would need some training, but we can figure that out later. First, you need a place to stay. I'll get someone to look into that as soon as possible. Until then, you are free to roam the village."

He pulled out two things from a pile of clutter on his desk. They were maps.

"You may use these to find your way around. You should be back here in four hours. By then, we should at least have the housing problem solved."

He stood and handed them the maps. "Have fun."

When they had left, he sat down in his chair with a heavy sigh, muttering to himself.

"How in the hell did they get back?"

Now, he had to find them a place to stay. He knew that there would be almost no apartment buildings with room to spare, so he would have to find someone who had a lot of room and wouldn't be too inquisitive about them, or at least not so openly inquisitive that it made others wonder as well.

He thought he might have just the right person for the job.

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**Author: Yay for me! I finished! Now, I can read my library book. It was due yesterday, so I need to finish it.**

**Hitori: Well, at least you did this first.**

**Shihan: She only did this because she wanted to procrastinate.**

**Author: Shihan! Hello! Why are you such a grumpy pants mc stinker stein?**

**Shihan: First of all, it's rude to call people weird names. Second, I'm in a foul mood because you always write with Hitori as the main focus. It's not fair!**

**Hitori: Is too!**

**Shihan: Is not!**

**Hitori: Is too!**

**Shihan: Is not!**

**Author: I can see where this is going. Okay, okay, you guys. Next chapter, I will write with Shihan as the focus, alright? Now, please just STFU!**

**Hitori and Shihan: Okay…**

**Author: Don't forget to review! I need to know if anyone is reading this! Also, I want to know what pairing you would like for Hitori: Gaara or Shino. I think they're both cool characters, so I can't decide. If you have any ideas about Shihan, please share those as well! Thank you for reading!**

**Hitori and Shihan: Buh-Bye!**


	6. Suspicion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto… (mutters something rude)**

**Enjoy! Don't forget to review when you're done!**

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"_How in the hell did they get back?"_

Shihan and Hitori leisurely strolled through the streets of Konoha, not bothering with their maps. They didn't have any particular place in mind, so they just walked, barely hiding their awe.

Shihan was startled by Hitori gasping and turning around, looking frantically for something.

"Hitori, what's wrong?"

"Elsa. Bag." She turned to fact him, her eyes red with shock, worry, and fear. "Elsa was in my bag! Where is it?"

Shihan's eyes widened. They had completely forgotten about the cat in their shock about being here.

"We could go back to the Hyuga Manor and ask if it's there."

Hitori nodded, her eyes dulling slightly. "Yes. That's a good idea. Thanks."

Shihan took out the maps that he had folded up and put in his pocket and handed one to Hitori. He unfolded the other one and they used the maps to find their way back to the Hyuga Manor, getting lost several times before actually getting there.

Shihan knocked on the front door and waited to see if anyone would come to answer the door.

After a few minutes of waiting, someone opened the door. Shihan stared into the pale eyes of Hyuga Neji, who had finished training about half and hour ago.

"Can I help you?" Neji was looking at the two Goths disdainfully, as he didn't approve of people like them.

"We wanted to know if we left something here." When Hitori spoke, her was a little sharp. She didn't like the way Neji was acting like he was better than them.

"Follow me," he replied, turning immediately and going to the room where they had been earlier without even looking to see if they were following.

When they finally got to the room, Hitori ran in and looked around for her bag. She spotted it in a corner and ran to it, flinging it open, only to find that Elsa wasn't there. Oddly, she didn't freak out. She probably would have freaked out if Elsa _had_ been in there.

She walked over to the bed and looked under it, and smiled slightly, her eyes bright red in happiness. Elsa was under the bed, washing her paw like it was the most interesting activity in the world. Hitori pulled her out and held her.

Shihan walked over and got Hitori's now forgotten bag, putting it over one shoulder. He walked over to Hitori and pet Elsa behind her ears, earning a purr from the cat.

"Was that all you needed?" Shihan suddenly remembered Neji.

"Yes, thank you. Could you please show us the way back to the exit?" Shihan's tone was sharp like Hitori's had been, as he didn't appreciate how Neji was acting either.

Neji turned and walked them to the door silently. When they reached the exit, Shihan and Hitori stepped out. Before Neji closed the door, he decided to test something.

"Thank you for wasting my time," he said flatly, making Shihan and Hitori angry, causing their eyes to immediately turn blue and red. Satisfied with their reactions, he closed the door.

_Just as I suspected,_ he thought to himself. _There is something different about them, and I will find out what it is._

Shihan and Hitori were furious. "What is his problem?" There was no mistaking the anger in Shihan's voice. "I don't know, but I'm not going to forget that." Hitori's tone was enough to make even the bravest man flinch, but Shihan didn't feel the need to be scared of Hitori.

Shihan remembered something the Hokage had said and walked up to someone sweeping their doorstep. He asked them what time it was, and he realized that their four hours were almost up.

"Hitori, let's go. We need to be back in about twenty minutes and we'll need that time to find our way there. Come on."

Hitori put Elsa on the ground and started to walk with Shihan. Elsa followed, keeping pace with them.

When they had finally found their way to the Tower, they had about five minutes left. They barely made it to his office in time. The man that had been there before was still there and he let them in and opened the door to his inner office, informing the Hokage that they were there in the process.

"Did you find your way around the village easily?" Sarutobi's voice was laced with amusement.

"Yes, Hokage," Shihan answered politely.

"That's good to hear. Anyway, we believe we have solved all three problems. First, you will be staying with Uchiha Sasuke."

Hitori actually gasped at that. Sarutobi arched an eyebrow. "I take it you know about him where you came from." She just nodded numbly. Both Shihan and Hitori had always held a grudge against Sasuke for leaving the village. It had hurt Sakura so much. They didn't like the pink haired fangirl, but it was still wrong to be so cruel to her.

"Anyway, we couldn't find anywhere that had room, and even though Sasuke wasn't too pleased about it, he agreed to let you stay at his residency. As for a team, we can't just put you on teams, and you are too old to be put on a team with new genins. Thankfully, your demons are known as the 'Yin-Yang Demons' for a reason. You probably don't know this, but you would work best together because of your demons, Kumori and Anei. You two will be your own team. You will have no leader, but I assume you can handle things yourself."

He stopped to let the news sink in. After a minute of stunned silence, he continued.

"You will train with other teams each day, so as to not burden them too much and to allow you to train with different styles, so that your training will progress faster. I will also appoint someone to work with you both to help you access your power and control the demon's hold on you. Understood?"

Shihan and Hitori nodded slowly, still thinking over what he had said, mainly that they would be staying with Sasuke.

Someone knocked on the door and Sarutobi called for them to enter. It was the man.

"Sir, he's here." Sarutobi nodded and stood as a person entered.

It was Sasuke.

"Thank you for coming again, Sasuke. Now, would you please escort these two to your home so that they can settle in?"

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**Author: Hooray! I finished. I hope its okay. I'm tired, because I was woken up at five, then got ready for school, then remembered that it's Good Friday, so there's no school. Then, I couldn't go back to sleep. I wasted a whole slew of time on NOTHING! Not to mention the fact that my cat was who woke me up by PUKING ALL OVER ME!**

**Hitori: You really need to calm down.**

**Shihan: Yes. You're much too tense.**

**Author: GASP! I AM NOT TENSE!**

**Hitori: Why did you say gasp?**

**Shihan: Because she's tense.**

**Author: I tried my hardest to write centered on you, and now you act all ungrateful-like. No more attention for you, Mr. Ungrateful pants mc snootyness!**

**Hitori and Shihan: (sweat drop) Whatever you say, almighty author person.**

**Author: Now that's more like it!**

**Hitori: Don't forget to review!**

**Author: That's my line! No stealy!**

**Hitori: (sigh)**

**Author: Review, please. I NEEEEED to know if Hitori should be paired with Gaara or Shino! It's muy importante (very important, I think. I've taken Spanish since first grade and I still don't understand much. I'm taking Latin next year.)! Any ideas about a pairing for Shihan would be helpful too!**


	7. A Question

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**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

**Sorry I didn't put anything up yesterday. I won't post on Saturdays because that's when Naruto, Death Note, Bleach, and Blood + (which just ended. (sob)) are on, so I won't have the time. Sorry!**

**Enjoy! Don't forget to review. Flames are welcome.**

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"_Thank you for coming again, Sasuke. Now, would you please escort these two to your home so that they can settle in?"_

Sasuke nodded his head in compliance, then turned around and left, expecting Hitori and Shihan to follow him.

They looked at the Hokage and tilted their heads in farewell before turning to follow Sasuke. They walked behind Sasuke in silence through the building, walking quickly to catch up. They finally came up right behind him as they exited the building, and then started walking next to him, Hitori on his right, Shihan on his left.

They walked in silence for a few more minutes before someone spoke.

"Thank you for letting us stay with you. It's very charitable," Shihan said, his voice impassive.

"Hn," was all Sasuke said, if grunting counts as saying something.

They eventually arrived at the Uchiha residency. Hitori had never realized how big it really was. She couldn't keep herself from commenting on it.

"It must be awful to have to live here alone."

She barely stopped herself from hitting herself for being stupid. From what she had gathered from the series, not many people even realized he was the only one left in his clan. Why would she be any different than them? She should have just kept her mouth shut.

Sasuke turned to look at her, his face void of emotion as usual. He studied her for a moment before turning away to the door.

He opened it and went inside, leaving it open for Hitori and Shihan. He took off his shoes and they followed suit.

"This way," Sasuke said, the first thing they had heard him say so far. He went down a hallway, stopping at the end. There were two doors there, one on each side of the hallway.

"These are your rooms." He pointed at the room next to Shihan's. "This is my room. If you need me, I'll be in here. Don't need me."

He opened his door and went in his room, closing the door with a light slam. Hitori turned to Shihan, her eyes red with anger.

"He makes me so mad!"

She growled and turned to her door, opening it and slamming it much louder than Sasuke had. Shihan stared at her door for a minute, mild amusement apparent on his face. Finally, he turned to his room and entered, deciding to not slam it closed.

He looked around at the room. It was a very plain room. The room had white walls, a bed with black sheets and a single pillow, a bookshelf in the corner with some old dusty books, and a desk with a lamp and chair by the door.

Shihan didn't mind it at all.

_What do you think, Anei?_

'_It's sufficient. Do you think the girl understands how you two got here?'_

_I don't think so. She'll probably come to ask me about it once she settles in._

'_I suppose you're right. Kumori won't tell her about it, after all. She doesn't like to be helpful when she doesn't have to be.'_

Shihan sighed and sat down on the bed. He'd just have to wait there till she settled in. He hadn't brought much, but he had brought something.

He pulled the kunai he had out of a low pocket on the side of his pants and set them on the desk, then laid down on the bed. He resigned himself to staring at the ceiling, since he wasn't too tired yet.

Unlike Hitori, Shihan could sleep normally. Anei was the peaceful demon, while Kumori was the wild one. Now that they were in this world, Hitori would probably be able to sleep even less than she had before.

Once Hitori slammed her door, she stomped over to her new bed and threw her bag on the floor. Her room was the same as Shihan's, but she was too angry to examine her new room.

Elsa jumped up on the bed next to Hitori, rubbing against her and purring to comfort her. Hitori pet Elsa absently, staring at her bag. She didn't feel like unpacking right now, so she just sat there.

_Kumori, can I ask you a question?_

'_Sure, but I'm not saying I'll answer it.'_

_Fair enough. Do you know what happened?_

'_What do you mean?'_

_Oh, you know what I mean. Do you know what happened? How we got here?_

'_Of course.'_

_Well? What happened?_

'_Go ask someone else.'_

_I thought you said you knew!_

'_I do. I never said I'd tell you.'_

Hitori roared out loud and stomped her foot, angry. She sighed and tried to calm herself. She'd just have to ask Shihan about it. He obviously knew, since he was the one who had done it. She got up and exited her room, Elsa right on her heels.

She knocked on his door, sighing angrily.

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**Author: Hope you liked it!**

**Hitori: Why'd I have to be so angry? (glare)**

**Author: Don't look at me with that tone of voice!**

**Shihan: That doesn't make sense.**

**Author: I'll decide what makes sense!**

**Hitori and Shihan: (sweat drop)**

**Author: Well, REVIEW! I MUST know if Hitori should be paired with Gaara or Shino. Please give me your opinion! Any ideas about a pairing for Shihan are needed too! Flames welcome.**


	8. Temper Tantrums

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. (hgis)**

**Sorry I haven't updated as fast as I should have. I haven't felt all that well. I think I have a cold or something. Anyway, I couldn't think of anything because of my illness, but I was inspired by my first reviewer, fallen mist. Thank you for reviewing!**

**It took a lot of thought, but I decided on where they are exactly, time wise. I hope you like it! Sorry if it's bad. I'm writing this while I have a terrible headache. I need to sleep, but I can't. If I could, this would be a lot better.**

**Enjoy!**

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_She knocked on his door, sighing angrily._

Shihan got up slowly and went to the door, opening it as Hitori knocked for the tenth time. Apparently, she was impatient.

"Took long enough," she snapped at him when she noticed he'd opened the door.

Shihan merely walked back to his bed and stayed silent, waiting for her to speak. When she didn't, he sighed and decided to speak up.

"Was there something you needed?"

Hitori walked over to the chair before the desk, roughly pulled it out, and plopped onto it. Elsa jumped into her lap and she pet her absently, keeping silent for another minute before calming down enough to talk.

"How-," she shook her head. That wasn't right "Why-," she shook her head again. Wrong again.

"What happened?"

That was right. She knew Shihan understood what she meant. Nothing else too confusing had happened, so it was painfully obvious.

Shihan nodded to show he understood.

"Do you remember what the Third said about our demons?"

"Yeah. He said that they were the Yin-Yang demons, or something. So?"

"They're twin demons. Alone, they have great power. Together, their power is enormous. In our world, they were basically powerless. But, when combined, they had a small amount of power. Since this is the world they belong in, they were drawn back naturally. Because we are their hosts, this is the world we belong in, as well. That's about as much as I can explain."

"Why?" Hitori arched an eyebrow, confused slightly.

"Because that's all I understand."

"Oh," Hitori said softly, thinking over all he had said. It didn't quite make sense to her yet, so she tried to push her thoughts aside. She would think about it later.

"What's with the anger?"

Hitori glared at Shihan. He knew why, he just wanted to annoy Hitori, and she knew it. What made her even more furious is that she knew he had succeeded.

She slammed her fist on his desk, almost growling with anger.

"Sasuke just makes me so angry! Damn Uchiha thinks he's all that. Thinks he can just do what he wants without anyone stopping him. Well, have I got some news for him."

Shihan watched her fume, still muttering rude things under her breath.

Suddenly, someone knocked on Shihan's door and entered without even waiting for permission.

Sasuke stepped in and looked at Shihan, ignoring Hitori completely; making her even angrier, if that was possible.

"Someone just dropped by with a message from the Hokage. He said that you two have tomorrow off. You can spend the day however you want."

As soon as he finished, he turned to exit the room without even a glance at Hitori. Just as he was about to open the door, a kunai flew past him and hit the door, just barely missing his head.

"Next time," Hitori growled, now standing, "it won't be a warning."

He just continued to open the door, refusing to let anyone notice how shocked he had been. He hadn't even noticed she had moved until the kunai was in the door. Silently, he exited the room and left Hitori to growl at his Uchiha-ness.

"You know, you shouldn't have been so rash. What if he holds a grudge?"

"Then I'll make him wish he was never born."

There was no mistaking the malice in her voice. Shihan turned slightly to look at her.

Her eyes were so red they might as well have been on fire. Her shadow was wavering erratically, even though the light in the room was steady.

"Maybe you should go back to your room to calm down. Try to rest, okay? I think we should try to familiarize ourselves with the village tomorrow."

Hitori turned and stomped to the door, flinging it open and slamming it shut. Shihan winced; she could have been a little nicer to the door.

She stormed into her room, sprawling out on her bed. It wasn't like she was going to sleep any time soon, but she might as well be comfortable.

_'You shouldn't let yourself get angry like this. Doors can only take so much abuse. Slamming them isn't good for them.'_

_Shut up. I'll do whatever the hell I want._

_'Fine, fine. I wasn't telling you what to do. I was merely pointing out a fact.'_

_Whatever._

Hitori stood up angrily, walking over to her bag. She looked through the kunai she had brought until she found the one she was looking for. It was much sharper than the others; razor sharp.

She went back over to her bed and sat down on the end, pushing up her sleeve. She brought the razor sharp kunai up to her arm and made a thin cut, parallel to her vein. She sighed in relief and did it again and again, deeper each time.

She just loved the way it felt when her skin parted, when the blood slowly began to come out; sometimes in beads, sometimes all at once. She loved the irony scent of blood, the taste when she brought the kunai to her tongue and licked the blood off of it.

What she loved most of all was the way it made her feel. It made her feel something. She didn't care that it was pain; only that it got through to her. It made her remember that she was alive, even if only for a short time.

After a while, she felt calm again. She inspected her arm and frowned. It was going to hurt a lot in the morning. The thought made her smile.

She realized that she had been cutting herself for a long time. So long, in fact, that she was starting to get tired. That day had been pretty overwhelming.

She got up and went over to her bag to put the kunai back in it when she noticed something in the bottom of her bag. There was a large black t-shirt in it, and then she realized she had put that in the bag long ago. She had been looking for it for a long time.

She changed out of her clothes and into the t-shirt and her underwear and slipped in between the sheets of her bed. She didn't even bother to bandage her arms since the sheets were black.

After a few peaceful minutes, Hitori slipped into blissful sleep.

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**Author: I hope you liked it!**

**Hitori: (snore)**

**Author: (whispering) Shh. Don't wake her up. I think I'm going to sleep now. After all, it's about 2:30 in the freaking morning!**

**(slowly steps away from sleeping Hitori)**

**Author: (normal voice again) I'll try to put up some in the afternoon, but I'm sick, my mean grandmother is coming (for two weeks! AHHHH!), I have an orthodontist appointment in the morning, and I have such a bad headache right now that I'll probably sleep poorly and wake up feeling like a have a hang over (I'm only guessing what that feels like, since I'm not old enough to drink) or something and not be able to write well. Still, I'll try my best!**

**Shihan: You're forgetting something.**

**Author: Hmm? Oh, yes, review, please! I need to know if people are reading my story. Flames welcome. Goodnight!**


	9. Mistakes Happen

**Sorry if it's short! I'll try to make the next one longer! I didn't have much time to do this.**

**Enjoy!**

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When Hitori woke up, it was still dark. She just lay where she was, staring at the wall, still half asleep.

She heard a noise from somewhere else in the house and jumped, fully awake now. She went over to her bag and took out her pants she had worn yesterday, slipping them on quickly. She walked out her room quietly and walked down the hallway silently, her vision strangely sharp in the darkness. If she hadn't just woken up, she would have been curious about that.

After walking through a few rooms, she finally spotted something. It was a silhouette, barely visible in the darkness. She crept up behind it, stopping about a yard away.

Suddenly, whatever it was started to move, so Hitori lunged at it, tackling it to the ground.

It let out a muffled gasp and started to struggle against Hitori's grasp. She managed to pin it to the ground next to a door that lead outside. She opened the door a bit and let the faint light there was light up the room enough that she could make out who it was.

She let out a light gasp and stepped away immediately. She started to apologize furiously.

"Gomen. I-I di-didn't know it wa-was you. Gomen."

She backed up slightly, the light hitting her now so that the person she had attacked now knew who she was.

Sasuke stood up and brushed himself off, glaring at her. "What was that for?"

"I didn't know it was you. I thought it was an intruder or something. Gomen."

Sasuke turned and started to walk away, ignoring her now, which made her mad. She threw up her hands, exasperated.

"You could at least say that you were sorry too or something!"

He turned around and looked at her, glaring. Then, he noticed Hitori's arms. When she noticed what he was staring at, she cursed herself for stupidity.

"What happened to your arms?"

Hitori immediately put her arms down. "Nothing," was her quiet reply. She immediately ran back to her room and crawled back into her bed, laying there even though sleep would not come, leaving a slightly stunned Sasuke standing there by himself.

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**Yeah. It's short. If you have a problem with that, take it up with someone who cares. I'm really busy right now, as I have to go do stuff with my Grandmother now. Whoopdee flippin' do. I'll try to put something up tomorrow morning, if I have time. Going to a friends house tomorrow, so it's possible I won't post anything till Friday. Sorry. And don't worry, it will get more interesting. I promise!**

**Please review! I still need a pairing for Shihan!**


	10. Losing Control

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I'd like to say I've been busy, but it's not exactly true. Yes, I've been busy, but I've had plenty of opportunity to start on this and never did. I apologize for my laziness.**

**Enjoy!**

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_She immediately ran back to her room and crawled back into her bed, laying there even though sleep would not come, leaving a slightly stunned Sasuke standing there by himself._

Hitori finally crawled out of bed and sat at the end of her bed, her legs pulled up to her chest, her forehead resting on her knees. It was getting lighter out now, so she knew she should try to get ready for the day.

_Why? Why did I do that? How could I have been so careless? Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!_

_'Calm down, girl. No need to be so angry. Maybe he'll forget or just not care. It's no big deal.'_

_No big deal? No big deal?! Are you crazy? What if he tells? What if he makes everyone think I'm crazy? What if-_

Hitori stopped suddenly, letting out a small cry. She clutched her head, curling up more. She clutched her head tighter, crying out again, louder this time.

_'Girl! Calm down! Calm down right now!'_

The alarm and demand in Kumori's voice made Hitori come back to her senses enough to realize she _did_ need to calm herself.

Still clutching her head in pain, Hitori stumbled to her feet, swaying unsteadily.

She gasped in pain and yelled out, stumbling and slamming into a wall loudly. She crumbled to the floor in a heap, still clutching her head in pain. She didn't even know what had just happened.

A few moments later, Shihan ran in, closely followed by Sasuke. Shihan appeared to have just woken up. He ran to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder, saying something that Hitori couldn't understand. She started trembling and shook her head, yelling out in pain again. She knew something bad was happening, and she wanted them to stay away.

"A-Away… no… go… not safe… lea-"

Hitori pushed herself up shakily with one hand, the other hand clutching her head. She was just about screaming in pain, it hurt so badly. She looked at them and backed away, mumbling something that they couldn't hear.

Suddenly, she fell over screaming. Her shadow started moving on its own, moving to cover her. It started to absorb into her and she writhed in pain.

Shihan and Sasuke were too shocked to do anything but stare.

Hitori screamed again, pulling Shihan and Sasuke back to reality. They ran to her side, trying to see what was wrong.

Her eyes blazed red and she pushed them away. They fell down on their faces and quickly got up and turned back to her. Both of them gasped, their eyes widened.

Hitori's eyes were narrowed and feline. They were also filled with blood lust. In place of her normal nails there were long claws. Her teeth were sharper and somewhat longer. Lastly, she had black cat ears and a tail.

She grinned maniacally, running her tongue over her teeth. When she spoke, her voice seemed strange, like it didn't belong to her. It was like it belonged to someone older, someone else entirely.

"Well, hello there. Why, don't you two look absolutely… delicious."

Her crazed grin got wider and she crouched down, preparing to jump. She leapt at Shihan, raising her claws. He just stayed where he was, completely calm. Sasuke was so shocked he couldn't even move.

Hitori made a shallow slash on his arm, blood spraying onto her face. Her eyes widened and she started breathing heavily. Her eyes started to dim. When she spoke, her voice was barely a whisper, but it was her own.

"Shihan, I-I'm so sorry."

Shihan smiled at her warmly, showing he understood.

"It's okay. I knew you would stop when you realized it was me."

Hitori nodded slightly then fell backwards, her shadow returning to its rightful place. The cat ears and tail disappeared and her nails and teeth returned to normal. Before she hit the ground, Shihan caught her.

She weakly opened her eyes and gave him a weak smile to show she was alright. He helped her stand up and looked at her sternly. He whispered in her ear so that Sasuke wouldn't hear.

"You need to be more careful now that we're here. Since you aren't used to Kumori's power in this world, she can surface more easily. I don't think you'll be able to sleep anymore."

Hitori's eyes widened; she didn't get much sleep anyway, but she savored what she did get. She hadn't expected this, but she should have. She nodded her head.

"Okay."

She then looked around, and made a small noise of alarm. She still needed to get ready.

"OUT! Both of you, OUT!"

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**Author: I hope you liked it! It took a long time to do!**

**Hitori: That's only because you were watching tv while you wrote this!**

**Author: So? There's nothing wrong with multitasking.**

**Shihan: You weren't multitasking, though. You were watching tv with a laptop next to you. That's not really multitasking.**

**Author: Well! If you're such a smarty-pants, why don't you write the story?**

**Shihan: Because I'm not real. I'm merely a figment of your imagination that you're talking to for some wierd reason.**

**Author: Well... ARGH! I'm too tired to deal with this. Review, please!**


	11. Answers

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

**This takes some serious willpower to look at this screen with a head splitting headache, so please review to make it worth the effort.**

**Enjoy!**

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"_OUT! Both of you, OUT!"_

Startled by Hitori's sudden outburst, the boys jumped and ran out of the room. After the door slammed closed, Shihan decided that he might as well get ready now that he was awake.

As he was about to go back in his room, door still wide open from earlier, Sasuke stopped him. "Wait." Shihan turned toward him.

"What?"

"What the hell just happened?"

Shihan sighed. He supposed he owed him some kind of explanation now, since he had been dragged into the situation.

"I'll tell you later. I need to get ready right now. Alright?"

"Hn."

_Such a talkative guy,_ he thought to himself.

Anei laughed, being the good natured, evil, bloodthirsty demon that he was. Now, don't get me wrong. Anei isn't like Kumori. He wouldn't just take over his host like that, but he is a demon, after all. The fact that he's peaceful doesn't mean he's good, just not all that bad.

Shihan entered his room, closing the door behind himself. He sat down on his bed, sighing, and then letting out a groan.

_Why did something like that have to happen so early in the morning?_

Anei laughed again. _'You should be glad she went after us. If she had gone after the boy, he would have died.'_

_I've been meaning to ask you about that. Why was I so calm? Was it your doing?_

'_Yes. I didn't want you to act rashly out of fear. Since Kumori was taking her over, she didn't realize that it was my host she was attacking. When she came in contact with your blood, she recognized us.'_

_So Kumori will never attack us from now on, since she realizes who I am?_

'_I think so.'_

_Also, what happened to Hitori? Did she transform like Gaara does?_

'_Yes. You can, too. That happened to Hitori because Kumori was trying to take her over, but it can happen when you need to access a lot of our power, too.'_

_Really? Oh, one more question. What was with her shadow?_

'_That's right! I never told you about that.'_

_About what?_

'_There are two things you need to know about Kumori and myself. First, we are cat demons. Second, we control shadows. I can't believe I haven't told you that yet. I feel like such an idiot. Of course, it hadn't come up before because you couldn't see me.'_

_Couldn't see you before? You mean I can see you now?_

'_Yes. I'm sorry I didn't tell you that, either. You have to go into the innermost reaches of your mind. You can't be thinking of too much. I don't think you can do it right now, though, because Sasuke's waiting for you to get ready and explain everything. Are you really going to tell him everything?'_

_Of course not. I'll tell him what I think he should know. Some things are none of his concern._

'_Good. I don't think anyone else should know any more than is absolutely necessary. Now, I suggest you get ready.'_

_Good idea._

Shihan got up and walked over to the clothes sitting folded on his chair. He was wearing a plain black t-shirt and some loose black shorts Sasuke had let him have after he had gone to his room late the night before and asked if he had something he could sleep in.

He changed out of that and into his clothes quickly, slipping out of his room. He knocked on Sasuke's door, waiting for him to answer it.

When Sasuke answered it, he was dressed for the day as well. He let Shihan enter and motioned to a chair, which Shihan sat on almost immediately. He wanted to get this over with. Sasuke started asking him some questions, Shihan answering some of the more basic ones as fully as he could, while answering some of them vaguely, making Sasuke wonder if he was trying to hide information.

The most important thing was that Shihan only said that they were different. He never mentioned demons. If Hitori wanted to let him know that, which Shihan doubted greatly, then she could tell him herself. Until then, he would only give information that wasn't too important.

Hitori, back in her room, was sitting on the floor, her back against the wall, fuming. She had anger issues when things got too infuriating.

_What the hell was that for?_

'_What was what for?' _Kumori was trying to make herself sound innocent, but her amusement was obvious.

_You know what for! Why did you do that?_

Kumori laughed_. 'Girl, you have to realize something. I'm a demon. It's what I do.'_

Hitori groaned, hitting her forehead. _Just shut up, okay._

To Hitori's surprise, Kumori actually quieted, even though she was still chuckling softly. Oh well, it was better than nothing.

She got up and went over to her bag, pulling out the shirt she had worn yesterday. She took off the t-shirt and put that one on, her pants already on from earlier. She had another set of clothes still, but she didn't want to wear them yet. They were made for warmer weather, and it wasn't too hot out today, so she didn't want to wear it yet. She would save it for later.

She got her brush and left to search for a bathroom. While she brushed her hair, she noticed her lipstick was still on. She tried to wipe it off with a finger and it stayed on. She smiled slightly, realizing something. Now that she was in the Naruto world, her make up would stay the same, since that was her look. She had never thought of that before. It was a good thing, though. Now, she would never have to waste the time putting on makeup.

She finished brushing her hair and went back to her room, getting the medical tape from her bag. She wrapped up her arms, making sure to wrap it tightly. When she was done, she had medical tape wrapped on her arms all the way from her palms to about an inch above her elbow.

She put it back in her bag and remembered the money she had put in her bag. She mentally cursed herself for her stupidity. They wouldn't use American money here. She reached in to grab it but realized that it was no longer American money. It had changed to the kind of currency they used here.

She was really glad now, almost smiling. Now, they could buy stuff when they went out today to look at the village. She heard a knock at her door and opened it to reveal Shihan, smiling peacefully.

"Are you ready to go?"

* * *

**Okay, I'm sorry it's short. I'm probably not going to go into detail about Shihan's explanation to Sasuke, so just imagine it for yourselves. I'm not in a state to just sit here and explain boring (yes, boring) things like that.**

**I've had a stomach bug and I haven't even been able to look at my computer screen without feeling the urge to lose my lunch, but I'm getting better, so I'll try to update more. I won't update my new story as much, but I'll try to update today or tomorrow, if I can. I'm also currently working on a picture for someone, so I'm spending time on that. Plus all my school work, so I'm pretty busy.**

**Review, please!**


	12. Shock

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. It belongs to… uh… someone else who's name escapes me.**

**Enjoy!**

"_Are you ready to go?"_

Hitori nodded and pushed past him, ignoring Sasuke who was standing in front of his door, staring at her expressionlessly.

He wasn't sure what to make of her. Sometimes, she could be so calm and indifferent, but could immediately become livid and furious. It almost scared the young Uchiha boy.

Hitori turned around to ask Shihan something.

"Do you think we should we eat first or later?"

Shihan thought for a minute before deciding.

"We should eat first. We'll have more energy that way. Where should we go?"

"I don't care. I'm fine with anything."

"Sasuke." Shihan turned to Sasuke. "Do you mind if we eat here?"

"Hn. Whatever."

"Alright."

Hitori and Shihan followed Sasuke to his kitchen.

"Sasuke, Hitori, do you want some eggs?"

"Hn. Whatever."

"No."

Shihan made some eggs for him and Sasuke while Hitori made some plain white rice. Hitori finished first and sat down at the table with Sasuke. She just stared forlornly at the rice for a while until Sasuke rudely pulled her from her thoughts.

"First you're okay, then you're angry, then you're okay again, then you get all sad. What's with you?"

Hitori glared at him but thought of the perfect thing to say.

"Maybe you're not the only one with problems. Maybe there's something wrong. But, no, you're too obsessed with getting revenge on you brother to see that other people hurt too. You don't need to turn to others to get power. You're almighty search for power affects everyone around you, Naruto and Sakura the most. You need to get over the whole pity fest before someone makes you. Killing Itachi won't bring them back."

Sasuke stared at her, eyes wide, mouth open.

"H-how do you kn-know-"

Shihan walked over and put some eggs in front of Sasuke, cutting him off.

"Eat before it gets cold."

Hitori pushed her rice away and stood up.

"I'm not hungry. I think I'll start looking around. Come find me when you're done."

Shihan sighed and pulled the rice towards himself.

"No use letting food go to waste."

He and Sasuke ate in silence. Shihan ate like he had to eat as fast as he could. He made quick work of his food and got up, walking out the door and waving at Sasuke.

Sasuke finished and left to do whatever it was he had to do that day.

Shihan found Hitori quickly and they started walking down random streets, ignoring their maps. Picking places to go at random was much more fun.

Sadly, their fun was interrupted by a certain mob of girls. More specifically, fan girls. Even more specifically, Sasuke's fan girls.

"Hey! That's them!"

"They're the one's staying with him!"

"Let's get them!"

Hitori and Shihan sighed, Shihan because he didn't see why he was being dragged into this, Hitori because she hated Sasuke's fan girls.

The group stalked over to them and the girl in the front was almost rabid. The blond in the front spoke first.

"Who do you think you are? Stay away from Sasuke-kun!" Ino shouted angrily.

Hitori sighed in frustration. She really hadn't been looking forward to meeting Ino.

"We can't. We're living with him. There's not that much we can do about that. It's not like we chose him. If it were up to me, I wouldn't go anywhere near that asshole."

Ino ignored everything Hitori said. She jumped at her and Hitori punched her in the stomach hard enough for her to cough up blood.

"Stay away from us or next time I won't go easy on you Ino-pig!"

All the other fan girls ran when they saw her get hit, so Ino scrambled away on her own, giving Hitori and Shihan fearful glances as she ran.

"Well, that was definitely unexpected."

Hitori looked at him like he was an idiot.

"I thought it was obvious that that would happen eventually. Every girl but Hinata absolutely adores Sasuke, so someone was bound to find out and get mad."

"Why did they get mad at me?"

Hitori shrugged. "Who knows?"

Suddenly, five people ran by them, three short people and two tall ones, one with bright pink hair. Hitori started breathing excitedly and looked down the street to see one of the smaller ones run into a larger person with paint on his face. The person they knew as Kankuro picked up Konohamaru by his scarf.

"Do you know what episode this is?" she whispered excitedly to Shihan.

He nodded his head and stared at Kankuro. They walked up to Sakura and Naruto and stood by Sakura, watching with mild amusement as Naruto started to shout.

"You better take your hands off him right now!"

Kankuro just ignored him and tightened his grip. "We've got a few minutes before he gets here. Let's mess with these punks, huh?"

Konohamaru started to kick and struggle. "Let go of me you jerk!"

Kankuro smirked. "You're feisty, but not for long."

Naruto ran at him yelling, "Put him down!"

After he stopped Naruto and a bit more yelling and insulting, Kankuro dropped him. He was holding his hand because Sasuke had come in and thrown a rock at it.

"Wimp," Hitori muttered to herself.

"You're a long way from home and you're way out of you're league."

"Sasuke-kun!"

Hitori sighed at Sasuke's 'heroic act' and Sakura's fan girl-ness. He was just being a show off. To add to the showing off, he crushed the rock he was holding to dust. "Get lost."

"Hey punk, get down here. You're the kind of pesky little snot I hate the most: All attitude and nothing to back it up."

He pulled Crow off his back and placed it in front of him while Temari said, "What?! Are you going to use the Crow for this?"

"Kankuro, back off."

That voice made Hitori squeal in delight. Everyone turned to look at her for a moment and looked back at who had spoken.

Gaara just ignored her, waiting for 'Run!' or 'It's a monster!' or the ever popular 'Run! It's a monster!', but it never came. He finally looked at her and saw her looking at him in awe.

"Oh. My. Frazz. He's even hotter in person." Hitori finally noticed everyone looking at her again and she glared at them. "Don't you know it's rude to stare?"

They all turned their attention back to Gaara. "You're an embarrassment to our village."

"Uh- uh. H-hey Gaara."

"Have you forgotten the reason we came all the way here?"

"Uh, I know. I mean, they challenged us. They started the whole thing, really. Here's what happened-"

"Shut up…"

Kankuro cringed and backed up.

"…or I'll kill you."

"Uh, right. I was totally out of line. I-I'm sorry, Gaara. I was totally out of line."

"I'm sorry, for any trouble he caused."

Gaara disappeared through the sand and reappeared on the ground. "Let's go. We didn't come here to play games."

They turned to leave but Sakura stopped them.

"Hey! Wait!"

"What?"

"I can tell from you're headband that you've come from the village hidden in the sand. Of course the land of fire and the land of wind are allies, but no shinobi can enter another's village without permission. So, state your purpose and it better be good."

"Sakura, shut up." Everyone turned to Hitori. "They're here for the Chunin Exams."

"The Chunin Exam? What's that? I've never heard of any Chunin Exams. Believe it."

"Hey boss, those are the exams that every Genin needs to take to graduate to being a full on Chunin."

"Oh! Well why didn't you say so? I am so there!"

The three sand ninja turned to leave, but Sasuke had to stop them again.

"Hey, you, identify yourself."

Hitori walked up to Sasuke before Temari could be a total idiot.

"That's Gaara of the Desert."

_How does she know my name? _Gaara thought to himself.

Shukaku just laughed at him, obviously knowing something he wasn't telling, making Gaara suspicious.

Gaara glared at Hitori before turning to Sasuke.

"The girl is correct. I am curious about you too. Who are you?"

"I am Sasuke Uchiha."

Naruto opened his mouth to speak but Shihan put his hand over his mouth. They didn't want him to embarrass the Konoha Genin any more than he had to. The sand siblings turned and jumped away and Shihan let Naruto go.

"Hey! What was that for?"

Hitori stared at him blankly before answering as if it was obvious. "We didn't want you embarrassing us any more."

"Us? Do we even know you?"

Hitori turned to Sakura to answer her question. "You probably don't. Sasuke knows us, though. Us, as in the Konoha Genin."

"You're Konoha Genin? We've never met you. And how does Sasuke-kun know you?"

"Yes, we're Konoha Genin. Of course you've never met us. And Sasuke knows us because we're staying with him."

With that, Hitori turned and started to walk off, leaving a stunned Sakura and a confused Naruto.

"Who was that?"

Shihan smiled at Naruto. "That was Hitori. Don't mind her. She's not trying to be rude, she's just like that. I'm Shihan." He shook Naruto's hand and smiled at Sakura and Sasuke. "Bye."

He jumped off after Hitori.

_His smile is so empty, like it's fake_, Sakura thought to herself.

Shihan finally caught up with Hitori.

"What do you want to do now?"

"I think we should look for a place we can use to train."

"Good idea. Let's go."

They ran around in the forest for a while before finding a small clearing that didn't appear to have been used by anyone else for training in a while, so they decided to use it.

"What now?"

Hitori looked around and sat down in their new training grounds.

"Let's be lazy and just sit here for a while, then go back and shop around."

"Okay, but we don't have any money."

Hitori pulled out the money she had gotten out of her bag and showed it to him.

"Then what's this?"

**Author: Yay! I finally updated. We had standardized testing this past week, so I haven't been able to put anything up. I might not update often because I have this idea for a Death Note story and I'm going to try it out. If it comes out well, I'll put it up. I just won't update it or my other story as much as this one. I like it best.**

**Hitori: Awww. I feel so loved.**

**Author: I'm glad you do.**

**Shihan: What about me?**

**Author: Well, do you feel loved?**

**Shihan: Yes.**

**Author: Then I'm glad you do too!**

**Hitori: I feel so loved I'm going to help you out! Review please!**

**Author: Flames are welcome if they contain constructive criticism. Otherwise, there's no point in leaving me a review that says that my story sucks. It's just a waste of your time, since it won't affect me.**

**Shihan: Thanks for reading!**

**Author: Also, I had planned to have them placed in the whole Land of Waves thing so that they could meet Haku ('cause he's awesome!), but I have almost the whole Chunin Exam planned out, so I decided to start it here. Sorry!**


	13. Strawberry Gashes

**ATTENTION! I have decided that the pairing is no longer going to be Gaara and Hitori… for now. It will be later, but first she's going to be paired with someone else. I just don't feel like telling you yet. It will all be revealed in time. Later, though, when she's not with that person anymore, Hitori will be paired with Gaara. ALSO, I have decided a pairing for Shihan, I just don't feel like telling you that yet either. All in good time… all in good time. I feel so evil now. I 'm drunk with power (Ms. Swan is hilarious)! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the song Strawberry Gashes. They belong to ****Masashi Kishimoto and Jack off Jill respectively.**

**Enjoy!**

"_Then what's this?"_

Shihan and Hitori had spent practically the whole day shopping for random things, making sure they didn't spend too much of the money they had.

All together, they had only spent half of the money they had. Shihan bought some dark blue gloves that went about an inch past his wrist, left his fingers exposed, and had metal strips on the outward side because he thought they would be useful. Hitori bought some long black gloves that would go all the way to her elbows – so that she wouldn't need to bandage her arms every day - and some baggy, plain black pants she intended to use as pajama pants. Just because she couldn't sleep anymore didn't mean she couldn't be comfortable at night.

One other thing they had done, which had taken most of their day, was to look around at weapons. They were in awe of the varied amount of weapons they found. They had eventually decided not to buy anything, but they were sure they would go back some time soon to look again.

By the time they got back to the Uchiha household, it was almost dark. When they entered, they called out to see if Sasuke was back yet and they received a shout back saying that he was in the kitchen.

They entered the kitchen and saw him cooking something, which surprised Hitori. She hadn't known he could cook, much less so that he could cook well. After all, the something smelled good.

"Hello, Sasuke," Shihan said as cheerfully as he could, since he was tired from walking around all day excitedly.

He grunted back, and Hitori rolled her eyes and glared at him, which he ignored.

"I'll be in my room," she said to Shihan, since Sasuke was ignoring her for the time being.

"Don't you want something to eat?"

She shook her head and frowned, looking disgusted. "I don't eat dinner."

"Oh. Have fun then," he said in mock cheerfulness that made Hitori glare at him.

She walked away to her room and sat on the bed, sighing. After a few minutes of calm silence, she got up and put her new items in her bag, since her room lacked drawers. She rooted through it. She frowned, then pouted, then adopted a look of anger.

"Why didn't I bring my ipod?! Stupid, stupid, stupid me!"

She sighed again and threw herself on the bed, groaning. She loved her ipod. Why hadn't she remembered to get it?

"Why?"

'_You know, girl, you can always go back and get it.'_

Hitori sat upright suddenly, startled that what Kumori said wasn't mean or spiteful, but helpful for once. She was so stunned she forgot to speak to Kumori mentally instead of vocally.

"What do you mean?"

'_I meant exactly what I said.'_

"You mean, I can go back to get it?"

'_What else would I mean? After all, I've been here long enough to get enough power to do it on my own, and I have enough power to get there and back, but I won't offer again. This is your only chance.'_

"Why are you offering such a kind gesture? What will this do for you?"

She heard Kumori's sickening laughter. _'That device of yours is quite useful. I actually enjoy the things you listen to, so I wouldn't mind going back to get it. You can get anything else you want, too.'_

"Oh. I guess that actually makes more sense than I thought it would."

'_So, girl, what do you choose?'_

"Of course I'll go! Can we go immediately?"

'_Yes. Prepare yourself.'_

Hitori got up so that when they landed she wouldn't land on her butt.

Suddenly, she felt like she was falling and everything around her melted into black nothingness. After what seemed like hours but was only seconds, she appeared in her room, smiling.

Her smile immediately turned into a frown as she noticed that her room was still locked. The only way to lock and unlock her room was from the outside.

Apparently, her parents hadn't even noticed she was gone. She knew they didn't really care about her, but the thought that they didn't even noticed her disappearance hurt. It hurt a lot.

Quickly, she looked through a drawer until she found her ipod, and then went into her bathroom, which was only accessible through her room, to get something.

She opened her medicine cabinet/mirror and pulled several small, shiny objects out from the top shelf. They were razorblades she had gotten out of a pack of razors she had bought. They were sharper than any of her kunai.

Now that she had those items, there was nothing else she wanted to do.

_Alright Kumori, _she thought, remembering to mind-speak this time, _We can go back now._

'_Okay. Get ready.'_

Hitori smiled as the things around her faded into black. When she reappeared in the comfort of her new home, she grinned. She could do something no one else in her world could, besides Shihan, which didn't matter, since he was nice. She was doing something all of the people who she hated could only dream of doing.

It was comforting, to say the least.

She put all but one of the razorblades in her bag and changed into her pajamas.

Once she was in the comfortable clothes, not to say her other clothes weren't comfortable, she put her headphones on and sat on the floor, looking through her music till she found her favorite song, Strawberry Gashes by Jack off Jill.

She put it on repeat and held the small razorblade in her hand for a while until she realized that she wasn't paying attention.

Slowly, she brought the small blade to her right arm and made a shallow cut, watching at the blood slowly started to bead out.

She smiled a twisted smile and made another one, which turned into two more, then four more, each progressively deeper, till she decided that with the un-wiped blood on her arm she couldn't find somewhere she was sure she hadn't cut, she switched to her left arm.

After giving the left arm the same treatment, she turned up her ipod to its highest volume and leaned against the wall with her eyes closed, both arms still bleeding freely from the deep cuts.

Unfortunately for Hitori, Sasuke decided to ask her about how she knew about Itachi and to find out what else she knew.

Unfortunately for him, she did not answer the first time he knocked on her door, nor the second, or third.

The fourth time she didn't answer he got annoyed and decided to just go in. He figured that she was just trying to avoid him, ignoring him, or not in there. If it was the first two, then she would have to talk to him if he came in. If it was the last one, then he would just go look for her elsewhere. It was as simple as that, right?

Wrong.

As soon as Sasuke walked in, he froze in place, staring at her. He could hear the music and saw her mouth form the words silently, so he knew why she hadn't answered and that she was still alive. Knowing that she was still alive was important because of her arms.

He was shocked beyond what he thought was possible anymore. Seeing his clan killed was shocking. This was something all together different.

The thought that someone would intentionally harm themselves this severely was sickening, even to him. He looked at her peaceful expression and was amazed at how she was so calm about it.

"Hi- Hitori," he called out shakily. She didn't hear him, so he said it louder. "Hitori." When she still didn't answer, he walked over to her slowly, shaking her shoulder slightly.

Her eyes opened suddenly and she looked at him with a panicked expression.

"I… um… don't… uh… um… I… uhh…" She trailed off in her rambling, quickly gaining control over her composure. One thing that Sasuke couldn't forget was that her eyes had been red for a moment when she had opened her eyes. He was sure that he hadn't imagined it.

She turned off her ipod and he looked her in the eyes. She tried to look away, but she just couldn't bring herself to. She felt cowardly looking away. But she didn't say anything. She just stared.

"Why?"

It was only a whisper, so she wasn't sure she had heard right, or if he had said anything at all. When she didn't react, he spoke louder.

"Why?"

Hitori finally looked down, not wanting to meet his eyes.

"Because I want to feel," she said quietly, looking at the bloody floor. She hadn't realized she had made such a mess.

Sasuke wasn't quite sure what to say to that. "What?"

Hitori looked at him again. "I wanted to feel something to show me I'm alive." She looked back down, her voice hollow. "Even if it's pain," she said quieter.

He slammed his fist on the ground in pure anger. "You don't need to do that to yourself! That's crazy!"

She smiled sourly at that. "I know I'm crazy. I've been told that by everyone I've ever met. They can't all be wrong."

Sasuke was at a loss for words. The great Sasuke Uchiha, sole survivor of the Uchiha clan, was speechless.

Hitori gave him a sad smile. "I said that you weren't the only one with problems, duck butt."

That made his mouth start working again. "How did you know about that?"

She shrugged a little and gave him a sly look. "That's for me to know and for you to keep dreaming about finding out."

He wasn't quite sure that was how the saying went, but he knew that no matter how many times he asked, she wasn't just going to tell him.

"Maybe… someday," she said softly, looking at the opposite wall, "I'll tell you."

Hitori suddenly moved to get up and Sasuke remembered her arms. They were still bleeding, but she wasn't having too much trouble standing.

"Are you going to be okay? You're still bleeding."

"Yeah," she said, walking over to her bag to get some medical tape. "I'm used to it."

Sasuke shuddered. He couldn't imagine being used to pain like that, much less liking it. "I'm sorry."

Hitori turned to him, frowning in confusion. Sasuke never said sorry to anyone. Plus, she didn't realize why he was sorry. After all, he had never done anything _intentional_ to hurt her. The night she watched him leave the Village Hidden in the Leaves was a bloody night for her, but he didn't know that. It hadn't even happened yet. "What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry that stuff is so bad for you."

She shrugged. "Even if everything in my life was to suddenly become perfect, I would still do it. It's an addiction now. I don't think I could bring myself to let it go at this point." She smiled a little. "I like it too much now."

Sasuke stared at her for a minute.

"If I asked, would you stop?"

"No," was the immediate answer he got.

Once she was done wrapping arms in medical tape, she picked up her ipod from where she left it on the floor and put on shoes. She walked out the door and Sasuke followed her.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go on a walk. I think it'll help clear my head."

Sasuke stopped and watched her leave, silent. He went to Shihan and sat with him in silence, watching with slight amusement as the slightly older boy tried to get the cat to do tricks, normally ending with a scratch or two that Sasuke couldn't see on him a few minutes later.

Hitori jumped from roof to roof, unafraid to cry now that no one would see her in such a weak state.

The salt water tears fell freely, sometimes mixing with the blood that hadn't quite stopped flowing from her arms.

**Yeah, yeah, I know. It was depressing. I write what I know, okay? By the way, Strawberry Gashes is the most awesome song ever. It's my favorite. Look up 'Strawberry Gashes Corpse Bride'. There's only one thing that'll come up. It's the only one that really has a good quality streaming of the song. Anyway, I wanted to work on this yesterday, but I was sick (yes, again!), so I couldn't. I don't know if I need to wash my hands more or what, but I get sick too much. Bah Humbug.**

**Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed that, and I'm going to update my story 'Crimson Tears' today or tomorrow (for real this time), so I hope some people read it!**

**Review, please! Flames are welcome.**


	14. Falling

I'm so so so so so so sorry

**Also, I forgot to mention something before. The reason Hitori's cuts don't just heal is because she doesn't want them too, so she doesn't let Kumori heal them. Now, if someone else were to throw a weapon at her and it cut her, it would heal. I meant to say that last chapter, but I forgot. Sorry!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. (sniff)**

**Enjoy!**

"_I'm going to go on a walk. I think it'll help clear my head."_

Hitori ran for a while before becoming tired. She decided to stop and rest before heading back. She sat down on the edge of a high roof and stared up at the sky.

Sasuke walked out into the hallway from his room, having gotten bored watching Shihan long ago and withdrawing to his room. He looked around and heard something in the kitchen, so he stepped into the room and stopped cold.

Shihan was standing at the counter, chopping up something and stirring it into a boiling pot on the stove. What made him stop was what he was wearing over his clothes: a frilly white apron tied back with a big, overdone pink bow.

"What the hell?"

Shihan turned around and looked at him, his face black a moment before his phony smile appeared. Sasuke frowned at that, but didn't say anything. He didn't get the feeling the other boy would tell him about it. He decided to go on with his first train of thought.

"Why are you-," Shihan cut him off.

"-Wearing your mother's apron? It was the only one I could find. You don't do much cooking, do you?"

"How did you know that was-" Again he was cut off.

"You didn't think that Hitori was the only one who knew things like that, did you?"

"Hn." He turned his head away, before looking back. "What are you making?"

"Just some stuff I found around. I figured it would go bad soon, and I was hungry, so it seemed like a waste to not make it."

"Didn't you eat an hour ago?"

"Yeah, but I'm hungry again."

He took the pot off the stove and stirred it, setting it on a cloth on the counter. He took out a bowl and started pouring the unidentifiable thing into a bowl and didn't even bother letting it cool off before picking some of it up with his fingers and eating it.

"Want some?" he managed through a mouthful.

"I'll pass."

They walked into an adjoining room and sat down at a low table, where there was already a cup of water at Shihan's spot. He took a gulp and started eating again- no, inhaling the food, as if going slower or stopping for air would cause him to starve.

"Joo wan um ing?" Shihan asked, which was meant to be, "You want something?"

Sasuke hesitated, deciding whether or not to ask.

"Are you and Hitori siblings?" Shihan shook his head.

"Is she your girlfriend, then?"

At that question, Shihan stopped eating and coughed, choking on his food. Sasuke got behind him in a flash, hitting his back. Once he swallowed successfully, he rolled around on the floor, laughing so hard his sides hurt.

"Hitori… I… girlfriend… think… alive," he got out between gasps for air.

"What?"

Shihan got himself under control and repeated himself. "Hitori and I together? If she was my girlfriend, do you really think I'd be alive?"

Sasuke frowned, confused. "So you're friends?"

He received a smile, which didn't fool him in the slightest.

"Actually, I've only known her for a little longer than you."

"What? Then how are you so close?"

"It's… hard to explain," Shihan said unenthusiastically, hoping he wouldn't have to explain it.

"Try," was the firm response.

"We- we share a bond. Something links us together. It's as if we've known each other for a very long time."

He seemed to remember his food and finished his bowl. He went back to the kitchen and returned with another helping, plus a second bowl for Sasuke. When he tried to refuse, Shihan insisted.

"Eat it. If you don't start eating more, you're going to get brittle and die."

"You're exaggerating. Plus, Hitori eats less than me, but you don't make her."

"She has good reasons, I would imagine. Anyways, I think you're less likely to punch me over something as trivial as this."

Sasuke sighed and picked up a pair of chopsticks. He still couldn't tell what Shihan had made, but it smelled decent, so he took a hesitant bite. Shihan even stopped eating to watch.

He swallowed, eyes widening, and took another bite.

"Good, isn't it?" "Yeah," Sasuke admitted.

They ate in silence. By the time Sasuke had finished his bowl, Shihan had finished the rest of the pot. They sat at the table watching Hitori's cat play with imaginary bugs for a minute before Shihan spoke up.

"Where is Hitori, anyway? I thought I heard her leave earlier, but I wasn't sure."

Sasuke just stared at the table and Sasuke thought he wasn't going to answer him. "She left."

"Why?" Sasuke hesitated to answer, before telling what had happened to Shihan. He down scaled the amount of blood, but it was still enough to worry the other boy.

"Did you know she did that?" Sasuke asked quietly.

"Yeah. I- I just…" he trailed off.

He snapped his head up, realizing something. "We have to find her. At the rate she's got to be losing blood…" He didn't finish, but Sasuke knew what he meant. His eyes went wide. She would be losing even more blood than Shihan thought.

He stood up, moving towards the door. "Let's go."

Shihan smiled and followed. "If we split up, we'll find her faster." He concentrated and located Hitori's chakra. "I'll go this way," he shouted back to Sasuke, running in the opposite direction from where she was. Kumori would be able to take care of her until Sasuke made it to her.

'_She's going to kill you if she finds out,' _Anei said, amusement laced through his voice.

_Then I'll make sure she doesn't find out, _he replied, grinning inwardly.

'_You're awful,'_ the demon teased.

_Look who's talking._

Hitori didn't know how long she stared up at the sky, but she knew it was long enough for her leg to cramp up pretty badly. She stood up to stretch her legs.

And nearly fell off the roof.

'_Idiot! Stop being so stupid!'_

Hitori just ignored Kumori. She was in no mood to bicker with her.

She balanced herself and started to run over the roofs again. The first jump from one roof to the next was successful, as was the next.

The third one didn't quite make it.

So, she fell from a seven story building.

'_You IDIOT!'_

_Shut up. This is going to hurt, _she thought back.

She waited for the pain to come. It never did. At some point, she had closed her eyes. She opened one to come face to face with a smirk.

"Idiot," a much too smug voice said.

**Okay, I won't get into the specifics of why I haven't updated in forever, but if you want to know, send me a message. Otherwise, I won't bore you with details. Mainly, I had a terrible case of writers block. I wrote most of this during Religion (catholic high school).**

**High school is hard, but I'll try to make the time to put up chapters.**

**Please review, even if you're just yelling at me for not updating.**

**Feel free to point out any mistakes!**


	15. Of Demons and Cats

"Idiot

**Hey again! I'm putting up another chapter, because we have exams this week and I've been writing like crazy, because we're not really doing anything in class. I felt that since I was gone so long, I owed (if anyone still reads my story) you guys more than the last chapter was.**

**So, here it is! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, Gaara would get his eyebrows back from Lee.**

"_Idiot."_

Hitori opened both eyes and blinked at Sasuke. After the fifth time, he got annoyed and she stopped. Then, she noticed that he was running and she was being carried bridal style.

"Put me down." Her voice was blank, as was her face.

"Hn."

"Why?"

"Hn."

She didn't want to admit it, but she was too tired to fight back. Then, as much as she tried to fight the impulse to stay as she was, she curled up in his arms, resting her face on his chest. She felt him tense up, but was too busy thinking of all the ways to kill Kumori to care. She knew it was the demon's fault she had done that.

_I am _so _going to kill you for that._

'_I'd like to see you try,' _was the haughty reply.

When they reached the Uchiha compound, Shihan was already there. He opened the door for Sasuke, since he was holding Hitori, and gave her a stern look. She just ignored it: he didn't own her. He barely knew her.

"Put me d-" She was cut off when Sasuke dropped her. She scowled up at him, imagining running him over with various large cars.

_Too bad they don't have cars here._

Kumori laughed, a sharp sound that made her head hurt even thinking about it. She stood up and frowned at the two boys, before becoming blank and turning back to go to her room.

"Where are you going?"

Hitori turned to Shihan, giving him an 'oh-my-god-how-dumb-can-you-be' look. "I'm going to bed, you idiot." Shihan gave her a similar look.

"You can't sleep anymore, remember?"

"I'm not going to sleep, I'm going to meditate." With that, Hitori turned and walked to her room, Elsa following happily. She locked the door, even though she knew it wouldn't do any good. They were ninja, after all.

She sat down on her bed, legs crossed, Elsa curling up in her lap, she started doing breathing exercises. She receded into her mind, looking for where Kumori was hidden. Within moments, she found herself standing in front of a wall of fire. To her left and right, the fire stretched out as far as she could see. It didn't let off warmth. The entire place was cold.

"Kumori," she called out, waiting for some kind of response. She was answered with a growl.

"Are you here?"

"Yes," came the vexed response. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

"I'm meditating. I think it'll help my body rest, if not my mind. Where are you?"

"I'm on the other side of the fire, you stupid girl. Come over here."

"You mean you want me to walk _through_ the fire?!"

"Well, it's not like I can go over there, now is it? Hurry up."

Hesitantly, Hitori reached out a hand and touched the fire. It was cool to the touch. She snapped her hand back, surprised. Again she put her hand out and touched the fire, finding it a pleasant temperature. This time, she slowly walked through it. Then, for the first time, she saw Kumori.

She was _beautiful_.

There stood a roughly ten foot tall black jaguar. Her fur was glossy, bright green eyes radiant. When she moved toward her slightly, it was if she was dancing. Then, she saw the shackles that bound her, keeping her from coming too close to Hitori, and remembered how dangerous Kumori was. Still, she couldn't help but be amazed at the demoness' captivating beauty.

"Shocked? You wouldn't be the first. A demon is supposed to be an ugly monster, right?"

"The Kyuubi isn't," Hitori pointed out. "I've always thought he was wonderful. I just hadn't seen you before, and you never said… wow…" Hitori stared at Kumori for a minute, lost in thought.

"Why did you come here, girl?"

"I had some questions."

"Did you really think I would answer them?"

Hitori shrugged, a ghost of a smile passing over her expressionless face. "Not really, I suppose, but there's no harm in trying."

"I understand your reasoning now. What do you want to know?"

"Mostly stuff about your power."

"Mostly?" Kumori questioned.

"Well," Hitori said slowly, taking her time to choose the right words, "I wanted to know if you had ever met the Shukaku."

Kumori grinned both savagely and gleefully at the same time. "He was a most worthy opponent."

**I'm sorry it's short, but I felt like I should put it up. I'll try to make the next one longer. Really, I want to get all of this stuff over with so that I can get to the Chunin exams. I've already planned out the matches, and I'm excited about writing it!**

**Anyways, please review! If you do, I'll review one of your stories too!**


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